The government is to transport onions by rail from Maharashtra to Delhi, Chennai, Kochi and Guwahati as retail prices climb 45 per cent year-on-year; the centre says adequate stocks are available with both farmers and the government
The centre is set to roll out “Kanda Express” from Monday to move onions from its buffer stocks in Maharashtra to key consumption centres, as a sharp rise in retail prices prompts government intervention. The special rail movement will transport onions from Nashik to Delhi, Chennai, Kochi and Guwahati, where prices have risen above the national average. The move is aimed at increasing supplies in high-price markets and preventing further escalation in the cost of the key kitchen staple.
According to the Department of Consumer Affairs, the average retail price of onions rose to around Rs 42 per kg on Saturday, up 45 per cent from a year earlier and more than 19 per cent from a month ago. Prices have climbed particularly sharply in some major cities. In Delhi, onions were selling at around Rs 65 per kg, compared with Rs 35 a year earlier, while Chennai prices stood at Rs 58 per kg against Rs 33 last year.
Consumer Affairs Secretary Nidhi Khare said the government was preparing to transport onions from buffer stocks by rail to areas facing elevated prices. She also stressed that there were sufficient stocks with both the government and farmers to meet demand in the coming months.
The government’s intervention comes amid reports of a 5-7 per cent decline in kharif onion production in Maharashtra, the country’s largest onion-producing state, due to lower acreage and delayed monsoon rains. However, the agriculture ministry’s second advance estimate puts total onion production for the 2025-26 crop year at 30.73 million tonnes, broadly unchanged from 30.76 million tonnes in the previous year.
More from BusinessWholesale prices at Lasalgaon, Maharashtra’s largest onion trading hub, have nearly doubled since June, rising to around Rs 3,800 per quintal from about Rs 2,000.
To strengthen the buffer, NAFED and the National Cooperative Consumers’ Federation have procured around 0.12 million tonnes of onions so far this fiscal year. The procurement price has also been revised repeatedly, rising from Rs 1,270 per quintal in May to Rs 2,645 per quintal last week.
The government is expected to release the buffer stock in a calibrated manner, particularly in markets where prices are significantly higher than the national average. The centre had previously operated a similar “Kanda Express” service in October 2024 to move onions from Nashik to major consuming markets and contain price pressures.
